Educational grants to public institutions

Educational and training scholarships

SUPPORT AVAILABLE

Efling Educational Funds

The Efling and public sector education funds were merged in 2025. The fund is called the Efling and Public Sector Education Fund.

The fund is for those who work in the public labor market, for the City of Reykjavík, other municipalities and the state, along with other parties with whom Efling enters into collective agreements and which take into account the collective agreements of the aforementioned parties, such as nursing homes, independent preschools and Faxaflói ports.

You can apply for grants to conduct courses or other educational activities.

Allocation rules

Managers at institutions and workplaces of employers who are members of the fund can apply for grants from the fund to finance educational projects for the group of employees for whom the fund pays. Grants are awarded to the employer as a whole, individual departments or workplaces as appropriate. It is necessary that the grant application is made with the support of the managers of the relevant functional unit and the human resources department where applicable.

1. What is supported:
2. Grants are awarded for organized education by public employers that concerns their employees and is referenced in a work plan or educational plan.
3. The education can be in the form of an on-site course, a distance learning course, or digital education, as appropriate.
4. The projects can cover the entire workplace, or individual departments, employee groups, or positions.
5. If a project involves people other than Efling members, the grant will be paid proportionally in accordance with the proportion of Efling members in the participant group (local courses) or target group (digital education).
6. Grants are awarded to finance external assistance from professionals in the field of needs analysis for education. A needs analysis refers to a detailed analysis of the educational needs of employee groups, departments or workplaces. The analysis must be accompanied by an educational and cost plan, as well as a proposal for educational providers to meet the results of the needs analysis. The following applies to grants for needs analysis:
7. The maximum grant amount is 50,000 ISK for each member participating in the project.
8. The grant for needs assessments is a maximum of ISK 3,000,000, but not more than the cost of the project.
9. It is desirable that the entire employee group, department or workplace participate in the project so that it is supported, unless there are special reasons for the project to only include Efling members.
10. Only one grant is awarded for a needs analysis per organizational unit unless major changes have occurred at the workplace that require another needs analysis.
11. Grants are awarded for internal training of institutions, according to the following rules:
12. A special agreement is made with the institution regarding the grants for internal training and it is submitted to the board of the Efling Vocational Education Fund and public employers for approval. The board of the fund reserves the right to add other reservations and provisions to the draft agreement, if the fund deems it necessary.
13. The grant is only available to employees (participants) of the institutions who are members of the Efling trade union that is a member of the funds. The grant is usually paid after the completion of the training period specified in the contract.
14. The institution submits a formal program of the course(s) with dates and times, which is part of the agreement. The fund must be notified of any changes to the program.
15. An attendance list of participants, certified by the company's teacher/mentor, is required before the grant is disbursed.
16. The Vocational Training Fund reserves the right to conduct audits/visits during the course(s).
17. There are no costs for renting a hall (course facilities) or for catering.
18. The grant is based on each taught hour of a work-related course, with a maximum of ISK 12,500 per course hour. This price includes a preparation fee.
19. The maximum amount of grants is ISK 30,000 per member/calendar year. Example: an organization with 30 members can receive a maximum of ISK 900,000 per calendar year.
20. Course sessions with fewer than 5 students are not funded.
21. It is possible to receive a grant for study materials of ISK 700 per student/course, provided that the total grant amount does not exceed the maximum, cf. point ii.
    
    
22. An application must be completed and sent to Efling – a trade union, through a portal on the company's website. In order for an application to be considered valid, it must be accompanied by:
23. Description of the study/project, its structure and goals. 
24. See an example of writing an article. 
25. See an example of a satisfactory program
26. See an example of an incomplete schedule
27. Information about the person responsible for the project at the workplace.
28. Approval from the manager and human resources department as applicable.
29. Number of employees at the workplace or work group
30. Number of members in Eflinga.
31. Information about the party that will be involved in the needs analysis or provision of training (both internal and external).
32. See an example of confirmation from the receiving party
33. Estimated project costs, other grants and the applicant's own contribution.
34. Educational plan or work plan (except in the case of
    needs analysis projects).
35. For needs assessment projects, a grant must be applied for before the project begins and the project must begin within 12 months of the application being approved.
    
    Settlement is made when the study or project is completed and confirmation of costs and participation has been submitted along with a brief report on the progress of the study or project. The names and social security numbers of the members who have taken advantage of the study must be specified before the grant is paid, except in the case of the production of digital education, in which case the proportion of members in the target group of education must be reported.
    
    
36. No more than 12 months may elapse from the completion of a project until reimbursement is applied for, and settlement must generally be made within 12 months of the grant being awarded.

The same criteria for the above conditions apply to all employers who pay into the fund.

After the data related to the trip has been approved by the board of the educational fund, Efling members can individually begin applying for grants for travel and accommodation costs, which are paid as individual grants.